The Shadow Dog
by warrioressk
Summary: Shadow has been with Kagome since she was found hurt and alone on the street as a pup, Kagome found her and has kept her ever since. When Kagome falls down in the well Shadow follows her into the past and into the disaster that inevitably follows. But what if there's more to this dog than meets the eye and can only be revealed if a certain being is alive and well?
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

_Shadow has been with Kagome since she was found hurt and alone on the street as a pup, Kagome found her and has kept her ever since. _

_When Kagome falls down in the well Shadow follows her into the past and into the disaster that inevitably follows. But what if there's more to this dog than meets the eye and can only be revealed if a certain being is alive and well?_

_**I do not own Inuyasha!**_

A large black dog lay outside one of the many high schools in Tokyo, Japan, its grey eyes locked on the front door. Shadow waited with baited breath, her muscles tense and waiting as she knew that the bell for the end of the day was just about to come to an end. Her tail twitched in anticipation before she opened her mouth in a doggie smile as the bell rang out in the air.

Many walking by on the sidewalk merely glanced at the dog, those who walked it regularly would sometimes greet her as she was an everyday sight to see, others just shrugged it off and would have thought her a stray dog if it wasn't for the collar that hung around her neck. Shadow wanted to scratch at the collar but merely snorted and shook her neck out, trying to relieve the itching it caused.

When Kagome's scent hit her nose she jerked her head up and spotted the girl emerging from the school with her friends, with a whine of happiness Shadow bolted off, slipping through the crowd, hearing greetings along the lines of "hey Shadow" or "Go get her girl" as most of the students knew what the big dog was here for and had seen her repeatedly day after day with the same routine.

Coming up alongside Kagome, Shadow nudged the girls hand with her nose to get her to notice her. The girl looked down before she laughed and ruffled the fur on top of Shadows head "hey girl, good to see ya" Kagome said as she gazed at the large black dog that had been her constant companion for the last four years.

Shadow merely gave a doggie grin and wagged her tail, falling in step beside the girl, padding softly on the pavement. Moving silently was something that was planted into her subconscious and she did so even with the claws that could sometimes cause noise if she let them. She was brought out of her thoughts when she felt a hand on her head and caught the scent of one of Kagome's friends.

She didn't necessarily like Kagome's friends but she put up with them as she doubted Kagome would keep a dog that snapped at the people she considered her friends. She merely let her tongue loll out while enduring the petting she was receiving from the girl that was walking next to her. She barely paid attention to the conversation that was going on around her, she remained docile and waited for when she would be needed to protect.

Not to say that she wasn't paying attention, she was always paying attention, never letting her attention waver for a minute as she watched all the surroundings, she was always making sure that there was nothing to hurt or injure her human, ever since Kagome had found her on the streets, alone and injured, Shadow had felt a debt to be repaid to the young girl.

Shadow laid down outside the well house where she normally rested while waiting for Kagome to finish getting ready for school, she yawned and watched as Souta, Kagome's younger brother, ran after Buyo, the stupid cat was running from nothing… again. The cat bolted past Shadow and into the well house, causing Souta to stop at the entrance and look in with wide eyes.

He turned his gaze to the large black dog that lay against the wall and was about to call her before thinking better of it, he knew from experience that the dog only listened to Kagome, not even his mother could make the dog listen to her. Speaking of his sister, he spotted her walking out of the house and called her over.

Shadow watched the transaction between siblings as Souta tried to get her to go after Buyo since he was too scared to do so. Huffing out a breath Shadow stood up and followed the girl as she walked down the wooden steps leading to the well. Yawning, Shadow sat down beside the well while Kagome fetched the cat that was hiding for some unknown reason.

The slight presence of something caused Shadow's hackles to raise and a snarl form on her face. She jumped up and looked around, her tail arched in the air. Kagome walked over after giving Buyo to Souta and grabbed Shadow's collar "what's the matter girl?" Kagome asked her. Shadow merely growled in displeasure while she searched the well house with her eyes and senses, but couldn't pinpoint what was causing her distress.

Right as they turned to walk away, Kagome still gripping her dog's collar tightly, something grabbed Kagome from behind and pulled, Kagome screamed in shock and latched onto Shadow. Shadow immediately twisted and latched her jaws onto Kagome's shirt, just in case Kagome lost her grip, closing her eyes Shadow prayed they weren't injured as they were dragged into the well with Souta yelling in panic.

A feeling of weightlessness came over Shadow and she opened her eyes to look around, only to spot a centipede looking thing coming towards them screaming "the jewel! Give me the jewel!" Shadow barked and pushed off of Kagome to snap her jaws closed over the creatures shoulder with a deadly growl vibrating through her throat.

The creature screeched and started thrashing back and forth while Kagome managed to struggle out of its grip and seemed to disappear. Shadow yelped in shock and lost her grip; she huffed as she too seemed to disappear and ended up in the bottom of a well with Kagome next to her. Shadow let out a growl of discomfort as she sat up and looked around. Looking up she seemed to scowl as there wasn't any way to get her out of here easily.

A little while later the two of them, somehow, managed to make it out of the well, mostly Kagome trying to push Shadow up, but somehow the two of them managed to get out of the well and now stood in a field, looking around Shadow felt excitement and dread at the same time, she recognized this place, it was the place she had lived in before she somehow ended up with Kagome four years ago.

Shaking away the thoughts she figured she would learn all about what had happened eventually, whether from others or from the smells in the area. She didn't have much more time to revel in those thoughts again as a group of humans emerged into the clearing armed with farming tools, some actual weapons, or anything else they could get their hands on.

Shadow growled and stepped in front of Kagome slightly, her eyes narrowed as she watched the humans, wondering what they wanted with her human. It didn't take her long to figure it out as the humans surged forward, tying up Kagome and wrapped a noose around Shadow's neck, to which the dog growled in displeasure as she constantly tried to get to Kagome, only to be pulled back and her air supply cut off.

Letting loose a howl of rage she turned and glared at the human at the end of the rope, he gulped and started to back away. Shadow took one step forward before freezing as she heard Kagome's voice "Shadow no!" hearing her human cry out like that, Shadow's ears flattened before she turned with a whine in her throat as she watched her human being herded back to the village, herself being dragged along behind her by the rope that she oh-so-wanted to kill at the moment.

The villagers kept Shadow tied up right outside the village while they brought Kagome to their priestess. Shadow paced back and forth in agitation, her growls heard by those close by, and the kids who thought to come over and pet her were sent scurrying away in fright from the depth of anger in her growl. Shadow continued to pace back and forth, her tail lashing to and fro like a whip, she snapped at anyone who came to close to her.

After what seemed like hours Kagome came out and it seemed like she had cleared up the mix up that had happened. She spotted Shadow and bolted over to the black dog that continued to pace till the scent of her human hit her nose, letting out a low whine of happiness Shadow tried to jump forward, only to be yanked backwards with a gurgling sound and a whine of pain.

Kagome let out a cry of shock before she bolted over and quickly removed the rope while Shadow lay on her side taking in gulps of air "easy girl, its okay, its okay" Kagome soothed softly. Looking up she spotted one of the villagers nearby with a sword in his hand, his eyes zoned in on Shadow, Kagome's eyes narrowed "she won't attack!" Kagome snapped at him.

He jerked back in surprise and looked at her "how do you know? She's been growling constantly since she arrived!" he snapped back. Kagome glared at him "because she was worried about me! What was she supposed to know? You guys drag us here and tie her up and then drag me away from her! How is she supposed to act? Like she's happy to be tied up and nearly choked to death?" Kagome hissed in anger as Shadow managed to raise her head.

The man opened his mouth then closed it with a furrowed brow as he seemed to mull over the words, and technically she was right, the dog, from what they could tell, was extremely protective of her master. Even willing to kill someone to get to her master, they were all aware that the reason she didn't attack the man who held onto the rope while bringing them here was because the strange girl told her not to.

Shadow by now had sat up and was flexing her throat, checking for any lasting damage and was relieved to find that her throat was only sore, which meant that there wasn't any lasting damage to her throat. She then turned and tackled Kagome with a whine of happiness, licking her on the face to show her happiness, happy that Kagome was alright and thanks for getting the rope off. The man watching them was stunned by the amount of happiness the dog was showing, from the way it acted they had thought it was merely a guard dog.

Letting Kagome stand up, Shadow sat and waited for her next order from the girl who grinned at her "come on girl, were not in any danger" she said before she started to walk towards the hut she emerged from, Shadow hot on her heels, her hackles relaxed and tail wagging back and forth, looking much like the ever adoring dog that she was acting like, padding after Kagome she spotted many villagers watching them with wary eyes, she merely tilted her head and let her tongue loll out of her mouth.

Then their biggest adventure began.

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Heres what Shadow looks like.


	2. Chapter 1

**I do not own Inuyasha!**

**Chapter 1**

~ Years later ~

In the past years Kagome and Shadow had been fighting and struggling for their lives and to fix the jewel that had been broken. Shadow now stood in front of Kagome, a growl rumbling in her throat as she sensed something powerful approaching them swiftly. Shadow had grown slightly in the last years, her muscles which had already been powerful, grew taut and there was barely any fat left on her body.

Kagome had grown as well, although others couldn't see it, but she had grown in strength and her miko powers were starting to come at her beck and call. Shadow waited with a growl in her throat while Kagome had her bow ready and half drawn, waiting for whatever was out there to come out and confront them. Kagome had just come through the well, Inuyasha once again gone after Kikyou and the moment they started off they both had sensed something powerful coming upon them fast.

Shadow tilted her head as Sesshomaru alighted down in front of them, his face impassive as always, it had been weeks since he had regrown his arm and produced his own sword from his youki. "Sesshomaru-sama, what can I do for you?" Kagome asked him, her head tilted as well, Shadow relaxed a little but still remained wary of the demon standing in front of her, her mind once again wondering if he knew who she really was.

Sesshomaru studied them for a few moments before speaking "where is half-breed miko?" He asked her. Kagome's lips pursed "he's off after Kikyou" she said, muttering under her breath "again" which Shadow was sure Sesshomaru caught but he didn't show any signs that he did heard her last part. Instead his lip curled up in disgust "he still chases the clay miko?" He asked, Kagome gave a short nod before cautiously lowering her bow and resheathing her arrow into the quiver.

Shadow sat down, her muscles still tense, she felt the wind through her fur and felt great, the collar she had worn right before coming here had been torn off years ago and Kagome had figured all the other collars would get torn off as well so didn't bother bringing a new one, plus Shadow didn't stray far from Kagome unless the miko returned home to her time, where Shadow couldn't return as it was too hard to get her out of the well.

"May I ask why you are searching for Inuyasha?" Kagome asked Sesshomaru, her head tilted in curiosity. Sesshomaru seemed to contemplate and figured she would learn eventually, before he spoke though he evoked a barrier around them that prevented others from seeing inside or listening. "I went to the oldest among us demons for any advice or knowledge on how to kill Naraku… he told me something that my father had left for his sons but Inuyasha is needed to get there" He said simply.

Kagome hummed in thought "you do know if we go, which I am pretty sure we will, we'll have to leave quickly and make sure that Inuyasha doesn't tell Kikyou… I have a feeling that she is spying on us for Naraku more often than not" she said. Sesshomaru's eyes narrowed as he listened "I agree, if need be we can tie up the hanyou" He said simply with a shrug.

Kagome nodded before she grabbed her bag "well I'm going to let the others know what's going to happen and have them prepared to leave the moment Inuyasha gets back from his little outing" she said, her voice clipped at the end. Sesshomaru inclined his head and dropped the barrier around them; Shadow stood up as well and followed a small distance from Kagome, knowing she needed time to cool off.

Shadow sighed and dropped onto her belly outside of Kaede's hut, her head going to her paws while she watched the surrounding forests. Words spoken to her and Kagome both by the old priestess when they first arrived in this era running through her mind once again…

_**Flashback**_

_Shadow followed Kagome into the hut and stopped as she spotted the old priestess watching her warily, her one good eye seeming distrusting of the large black dog that was sticking so close to the younger girl, on top of that, Shadow could scent a good dose of fear lacing the priestess' scent when she looked at her. "Tell me, what does this dog mean to ye?" the priestess asked Kagome, causing Shadow to snort and lay down next to the young girl, her head on her paws._

_Kagome seemed confused as she looked down at the black dog "she's been my companion for the last four years… she's a friend and I guess a protector of sorts. She seems to be extraordinarily loyal and protective of me" she said, her brow furrowed in thought as she remembered back for those four years and how Shadow always seemed to be there when something was wrong and she needed help._

_The priestess, Kaede, listened before speaking "may I ask ye how you came to have her as your companion?" Kaede asked. Kagome hummed "it actually isn't that exciting of a story really. I was walking through my ci-village…" she started, changing at the last moment to terms the priestess would understand and make it less confusing for her. "…one night. At some point I heard a loud yelp of pain and went to go investigate._

_Finding the source of the noise, I found a small black puppy with an injured forepaw; she looked like she had been abandoned and was starving so I took her home and cleaned her up. Feeding her and taking care of her. She's stuck with me ever since and has been extremely loyal… now that I think about it, I was the only one of my entire family that she would listen to._

_Anyone else told her what to do and she would blatantly ignore them." Kagome said, continuing to stare at the black dog that merely huffed out a breath of air and closed her eyes as she waited for what this old woman wanted with her to be made clear. Kaede remained quiet for a few moments before speaking "I can't tell ye what exactly it is that I feel or, rather, sense about this animal… but something is not exactly right about her."_

_Shadow's head shot up with a growl in her throat as her muzzle twitched. Kaede made a placating gesture "not that there is anything wrong, I'm just saying you don't seem to be just a regular animal. Most don't understand what happens around them or what's being said about them… that is proven wrong by what just happened." She said simply, although the fear was back in her scent, like she was afraid Shadow would up and attack her._

_Huffing out another breath Shadow let her hackles fall and put her head back down as Kaede spoke once more. "I don't promise you any answers… but maybe if I could touch ye's dog I could try and figure out what may be off about her" Shadow's eyes narrowed at the woman, Kagome had no idea what was 'off' about Shadow but the said dog knew exactly what was 'off' and didn't know if she wanted others to know just yet._

_But she figured that Kagome was going to figure it out eventually so why not now if the priestess was able to do so in simpler terms than she, Shadow, ever was able to do so. Standing up Shadow padded around the fire and lay down close to Kaede, her eyes unblinking and trained on the priestess. Slowly and warily, Kaede reached out a hand and placed her palm on Shadow's forehead, letting her powers roll out and around._

_After a few moments she withdrew her powers and hand, her brow furrowed in confusion and contemplation "I don't know exactly what I am detecting, but I feel like there are some demon-like qualities to this dog… yet everything else suggests just the opposite, the main fact being that she doesn't have any powers to suggest that she is a youkai" Kaede said before shaking her head "I'll contemplate this some more and might be able to figure out what is going on here"_

_**Present**_

Shaking her head Shadow chased away the thoughts; despite Kaede contemplating she still hadn't found out what Shadow knew, and even in all that time Shadow still hadn't figured out a way to get free of her current predicament she was in. Shaking her head once again she focused on the present as Inuyasha's scent hit her nose, alerting her to his fast approaching return, she let out a low whine-like bark or warning that both Sango and Miroku understood meant that Inuyasha was returning as it didn't have the tone of danger rather just a 'heads' up like vibe.

"What are you doing here bastard?" Inuyasha demanded, his temper already rising. Shadow raised her head and growled at Inuyasha, letting loose a deep throated bark of warning for him to back down from the challenge he was more than likely going to throw out. Which drew the hanyou's attention to her, Inuyasha had never liked Shadow because she always hated when he tried to interfere with Kagome and other males. He glared at her now "you keep you trap shut mutt" he snapped at her.

Shadow growled even more dangerously and raised up from her belly, her legs bent and belly close to the ground as she stalked closer to Inuyasha, her lips drawn back to reveal gleaming white fangs that dripped with saliva. Many said that Shadow was large for a bitch and she was, at first glance many thought she was a male before they took a closer look and realized that she was a female who was larger than most males.

Inuyasha glowered at her, his own muscles prepared for an attack from the large dog. Before Shadow could lunge forward and beat the hanyou's ass, Kagome's voice rang out "Inuyasha! Don't you dare call Shadow a mutt!" The girl snapped in anger as she stormed out of Kaede's hut, glowering at the hanyou. He gulped and backed away "but she is!" he protested, which wasn't the right thing to say.

"Inuyasha" Kagome said sweetly, her eyes glittering with mirth that directly contrasted her voice. "**SIT!**" Shadow grinned as the hanyou slammed into the ground, creating an Inuyasha sized hole in the ground. Kagome stood right in front of it, hands on hips and foot tapping the ground as she glowered at the mutt, yes Shadow called Inuyasha a mutt in her mind because hey, he was one.

"Now Inuyasha, Sesshomaru is here because your father apparently left something behind for the two of you, and we are leaving now." She told him, her voice broking no argument. But of course, the irritated Hanyou had to argue "WHAT? You're just going to go along with him without any questions?!" He yelped as he stood up. Kagome rolled her eyes "he hasn't tried to kill us in months so shut up about it already. This gift might be the tipping point to finally beat Naraku so were going and. YOU. ARE. NOT. GOING. TO. TELL. KIKYOU." She said, emphasizing the last few words.

Shadow growled in agreement and flashed her teeth in warning as the monk, slayer, fire neko, and kit joined them to watch the confrontation. Shadow sat down and waited as the argument continued till Kagome sat Inuyasha a total of five more times and they finally started off, Inuyasha sulking near the back. Shadow dropped back and trailed after the hanyou to make sure he didn't try and go to Kikyou.

He of course, noticed her, and glared at her "I ain't going nowhere so you can stop with guard duty" he snarled at her, seeming ready to explode and Sesshomaru didn't help with the matter when he spoke up "we don't know for sure Inuyasha" he said simply over his shoulder as they continued to walk.

Once they were far enough away from the village Sesshomaru led them to where he left his ward, retainer, and dragon type thing. Once he reached them he turned "can we perhaps move a little faster?" He asked the group, although it sounded more like an order with his tone of voice. Kagome merely gave a noise of acknowledgement and got onto Inuyasha's back.

Shadow huffed in annoyance and made her way to Kirara, she hated traveling fast as being a dog it wasn't too comfortable trying to grip a large cat. She only took three steps when Sesshomaru spoke up "I'll carry the dog, as I doubt it is neither comfortable nor easy to keep her on the fire neko's back" he said with a bored tone. Shadow glowered at him but slunk over to him, huffing out a snort of air.

Sesshomaru formed his youki cloud and made sure that Shadow was on the cloud and wouldn't be left behind before they took off, Sango and Miroku riding Kirara, Shippo, Rin, and Jaken on Ah-Un, Kagome with Inuyasha, and Shadow stuck with Sesshomaru. While she was happy to not be riding the fire neko anymore, she wasn't necessarily pleased with her newest partner, Sesshomaru seemed like he could kill her just as easily help her if he so chose.

Peeking over the edge of the cloud of youki, Shadow watched as the world went by and also spotted Inuyasha jumping down below, she felt her fur ripple as she watched him carry Kagome. Shadow hated how Kagome adored the hanyou and he constantly abandoned her for a dead clay miko who was betraying them constantly. Before her thoughts went even deeper into that subject she jerked them out and turned away from watching the hanyou with a short growl of anger in his direction.

Sesshomaru seemed to notice what she was doing and raised an eyebrow "you seem more intelligent than your average dog… I take it you don't like how the hanyou holds your masters heart." He said with a sneer, obviously thinking that she couldn't understand what he was saying to her. She looked at him and somehow managed to raise an eyebrow at him like she was surprised it took him that long to figure it out.

Snorting out a breath of air she laid down and put her head on her paws while waiting for the day to come to an end so they could set up camp and sleep… and she knew that with her little display she had intrigued the inuyoukai that was next to her, for she had just proved that she was indeed smarter than an average dog and seemed like she understood everything that happened around her, which in truth she did.

They traveled for four days, stopping during the night to let those of them who weren't demons to rest… which gave Sesshomaru his next clue as to what Shadow was because she didn't seem to sleep. She would close her eyes yes, but she never fell asleep fully, and if she did it wasn't for very long. Once everyone else was asleep she would wake up and go into the woods to start circling the camp, scenting and making sure the area was secure, her eyes bright and no sign of tiredness in them.

Sesshomaru continued to watch her, each day trying to figure out the enigma that was the large black dog that traveled with the miko and her group. The dog, known as Shadow, didn't seem to be as dumb as the rest of the dogs in the world, she seemed to understand all that was said and going on, on top of that she seemed to not need as much time to rest and recover as the rest of her species did. Shaking his head, he pushed that issue to the back of his mind and focused on the current predicament.

Finally, they reached their destination after what seemed like forever, their destination at the moment was a clearing which seemed to be close to where the Inutaisho had died. They followed Sesshomaru as he went along a path that they wouldn't have known was there till he turned onto it. Arriving in front of a cave Shadow froze as she felt a familiar but faint aura coming from inside. Sesshomaru stopped and looked over his shoulder "the kit and Rin should stay out here with Jaken and Ah-Un" he said.

Shippo looked around ready to protest when Shadow gave him a gentle nip on the ear, he looked at her with sorrow eyes but went and sat down beside Rin who was resting next to Ah-Un. Once he was settled the rest of the group started into the cave. Shadow lingered for a moment longer before she entered as well, having a bad feeling about what was about to happen… well not necessarily a bad feeling, just not exactly a happy feeling.

The moment Shadow stepped fully into the tunnel a bright light engulfed her, yelping in shock and fear as she remembered the last time this happened, it had been seven years since something like this happened but she still remembered and it still scared her like it had then, she started thrashing, trying to get out of it but it remained, trapping her inside. She heard Kagome shouting along with Sango and Miroku, letting loose a howl of fear Shadow tried to run but she couldn't move away, whether it is forwards or backwards.

Then suddenly the light flared, holding Shadow completely frozen in place before it suddenly moved forward, taking the shivering dog with it. Shadow heard Kagome screaming "someone do something! Can't you hear her! She's scared!" Shadow whimpered again as the light allowed her to see where it was taking it, in the back of the cave, back where the rest couldn't see was a raised stone, she heard Inuyasha gasp and a second later the black pearl that was in his eyes came flying past Shadow towards the stone.

The pearl hovered right above the stone, and the moment the light containing Shadow was above the stone as well the pearl started spinning in a circle, going faster and faster before coming closer to Shadow. She yelped and tried to get away, but she couldn't move her body and the pearl kept coming and pressed against her chest, right where her heart would be. She howled in fear as the light grew brighter and brighter, blinding everyone in the cave before a gust of wind seemed to be released and the light blinked out as suddenly as it began.

The rest of the group remained near the front of the cave with caution when suddenly Inuyasha blinked and the center of his eye was black again, but none had seen the pearl return to his eye. Kagome, not seeming to care about consequences, bolted past everyone and ran to the back of the room. She froze upon coming in sight of the stone, there on the stone were two beings, but neither of them were Shadow… at least, she didn't think either of them was Shadow.

But that wasn't only what made her freeze, one of the beings, who was the only one of the two awake, resembled Inuyasha and Sesshomaru down the silver hair that cascaded down his back. He didn't seem to notice Kagome as he leaned over the second being, who was a beautiful female with an hourglass figure, waist length, ebony black hair, red stripes on her cheeks and long legs, he was gently shaking her seeming to try and wake her up.

Kagome was aware of the rest of the group approaching and heard Inuyasha gasp while Sesshomaru seemed to remain silent for a few moments before he spoke "is that really you father?" He asked his voice emotionless. The male looked up, seeming to finally notice that there were others in the cave with him. "Yes Sesshomaru it is I Touga. No, this isn't a trick and I will explain it to you once Kumori wakes up" He said, turning his attention back to the female that remained still and unmoving beside the rise and fall of her chest.

Sesshomaru took in her scent and froze "it can't be! This has to be a trick" He exclaimed, his father chuckled "that I can assure it is not, like I said I'll explain it once she wakes and you'll have the answer to all your questions." Inuyasha looked at them in confusion "what are you going on about?" He demanded. Sesshomaru rolled his eyes "take a breath hanyou" he snapped at his half-brother.

Inuyasha grumbled but did so and froze as the scent of the female rang in his mind "oh god, you've got to be kidding me" he groaned, knowing there was going to be hell to pay for all that he had done before, for he knew this particular female would enjoy using her new powers against him. Kagome still didn't get it but decided to keep quiet as Touga continued to try and wake up the woman.

After a few minutes of silence the woman let out a groan and turned her face away from the light "what the hell do you want Touga?" She whined before she stiffened and her eyes flew open and upwards to stare at the male who was smirking down at her. Her hands flew up and to his shoulders and face, seeming to make sure he was real "no… this can't be! I watched you die!" She gasped in shock.

Then the rest of her memories came flying back and she looked at her hands "how… how is this possible? I've tried for so long but nothing worked… how…" Touga put a hand over her mouth to stop her constant babble. "All will be explained in time Kumori… or rather, should I call you Shadow since that seems to be your new name?" he asked her with a chuckle at her wide-eyed look, hearing the rest of the group freeze and just stare at them.

"Touga you bastard! I was going to tell them in a better way than that!" She snapped at him, her eyes narrowing in anger, he grinned at her "ahh, there's the spirit of the girl I know" he teased before standing up and helping her do so to. The demon, as it was clear that was what she was, turned and looked at the rest of the group "umm… I can explain…" she offered helplessly, making hand gestures of helplessness.

Kagome seemed frozen before she spoke slowly "so you're saying that for the past seven years I've had a demon as my companion?" She asked. The woman, who Kagome could still only think of as Shadow, nodded "technically yes and no, I was born a demon but for the past seven years I was stuck as a mortal dog, having my memories but not being able to use any of my previous powers or change my form" she said with pursed lips.

Opening her mouth again, Kagome was about to ask another question when Touga spoke up "might we move somewhere more comfortable, I doubt you want to be standing for this tail, as it is a rather long one" He said simply, his hands in his pockets. The group quickly agreed, Shadow realized that going out like this would confuse both Rin and Shippo and shifted to look like the large black dog that she had been for the last seven years.

Kagome opened her mouth then remembered Shippo and Rin as well and closed her mouth again before walking out of the cave, her mind whirling. Shadow watched her with pain in her eyes, she jumped as she felt a hand on her back and looked up to find Touga watching her before he started forward, Shadow right on his heels, she bolted past him though and emerged to find Shippo and Rin waiting.

The kit started running towards her with a grin but Inuyasha stopped him and glared at her. Baring her fangs in anger she growled at him but didn't make a move towards him, only turning and stalking after Kagome, her tail tip twitching. The rest of the group followed after the miko, giving both Shadow and Touga somewhat of a wide birth, although Shippo kept staring at Touga with wide eyes.

Once they reached their previous camp Kagome and the rest set up before sitting down and looking at the two "okay, so can you explain how all this happened?" Kagome asked before either Inuyasha or Sesshomaru could speak, knowing they would demand answers rather than ask. Touga looked at the black dog and raised an eyebrow. Letting out a huff of air she let her youkai rise, watching as Shippo gazed at her in shock.

She transformed once again to her human form, keeping her eyes off the kit, he broke the silence that was once again encasing the camp "so… you're a demon?" Shippo asked her, she nodded and was surprised when he slammed into her with wide, excited eyes. "That's awesome!" He exclaimed. She grinned, showing off her fangs "ya think so?" She asked him "of course! It's awesome!" He said with a grin of his own.

He seemed to break the ice and the rest of the group chuckled at his words, Sango spoke up first "it actually is cool, plus we have your added help… not that you haven't been before Shadow but even more help now" she said, adding the last part hastily in fear of offending. Shadow laughed "don't worry Sango, I'm not offended as I knew that even with being able to kill with fangs I was still somewhat of a burden on you guys… now not so much" she said.

She then turned to look at Kagome "Kagome…" she started timidly, afraid of what the miko would say, as she had been with her the longest and she had started to see the young girl as a friend. Kagome seemed to be pondering "going from what you said earlier, you were stuck as a dog for the past seven years. Starting as a puppy?" She asked. Shadow nodded "yes, I don't know how or why but it happened" she said so no questions on how came about, directed at her anyways.

Kagome nodded "but I do have a few questions… why did you feel so protective over me? And why stay with me for so long, even after coming here? Or were you just pretending to care for us?" She asked, worry in her tone. Shadow laughed before smiling "no need to worry about the last question, I care for all of you deeply. As for the first, you saved my own life when you found me as a 'pup' in your time. I could easily have died of starvation or something far more dangerous." She started, sitting down as she did, still holding Shippo.

"I stayed with you for so long, even after coming here, because after spending four years with you in your time, I considered as pack in my own way, you protected and cared for me so I protected and cared for you as well as I could. Why do you think I met you every day after your school? I cared for you and even after coming here I didn't want to leave you, for it would feel like I was abandoning my pack and that is something I would never do" she said seriously as Touga sat down next to her, to which she discreetly moved away from him.

Kagome seemed to breathe a sigh of relief after hearing that "umm… what's your real name? I know I sorta named you Shadow when I thought you were a dog, but your real name, what is it?" she asked. Sighing Shadow spoke "My real name is Kumori, which if you remember means shadow in some languages" she said with a grin at the irony "so technically saying you basically called me by my actual name, just in a different tongue" she said with a chuckle.

The rest were silent for a moment before laughing as well, all except for Inuyasha and Sesshomaru. Once the laughter died down, Kumori turned to Touga, her eyes narrowed "now, I want to know what happened? I know that you know what happened to me so spill" she demanded, she heard intake of breaths but didn't pay attention to them. Touga raised an eyebrow at her "demanding are we?" he said with a smirk, a glint in his eye.

Kumori rolled her eyes "yes, yes, we all know you can kill me with one swipe can we skip that and get to the story" she snapped angrily, glaring at him while he laughed before grinning at her before he started speaking. "You are right dear Kumori" he began, ignoring her glare at the word dear and being sarcastic when he spoke her name but grinning to take away the insult. "I do know what happened and am more than willing to tell you" he said as he settled back on his hands.

"To begin, technically if I had stayed where I was without doing anything I would have died. I already had an idea on how to prevent my death but didn't have time to prepare before I was dying, so I reached out to the closest person near me at the time of my apparent death, which happened to be you Kumori, I don't really understand why, but because of doing so, my essence and soul not only transported you somewhere but also trapped you in that dog form.

"I believe it did so that the two souls you would be carrying weren't constantly battling, one remained dormant inside of you while the other stayed active and controlled you, so basically my soul remained dormant inside of you for the last… wait you said it's been seven years since you were a pup?" He asked confusion now on his face.

Kumori nodded and explained knowing why he was confused "technically it has been seven years that I have been a pup, but like you said, I was transported by your essence or whatever the hell it was. But anyways, I was transported centuries into the future. Kagome is actually from five hundred years in the future from this time" she said "so its technically been seven hundred years since you died when I regained consciousness but it felt like only a matter of seconds which it actually was, to me at least" she said.

Touga's eyebrows raised in surprise "well that is surprising, so how did you two get here?" He asked. Kagome chuckled "the bone eaters well is basically a transporter device between here and my time, years ago both Sha-Kumori and I got dragged into it by Mistress Centipede" she said with a shrug. Touga nodded and continued to talk about how he came to be.

"Anyways, despite the time frame of years, the cave was made for when I would return to life, the pearl in Inuyasha's eye contained my body and you contained my soul. I didn't know for sure if just by chance the two of you would come to the cave, so I gave info to the oldest youkai who I trusted with the information about how to do so way back, and when the time came he would tell Sesshomaru to find Inuyasha and the black hound that seemed to have demon traits yet wasn't a demon at the same time.

"A spell was put in place so when you crossed the threshold with Inuyasha, my soul that resided dormant inside you would come out and draw the pearl out as well, then the two would combine and sorta catapult me back into life while also allowing your demon abilities to come back into play" he said with a small twitch of his nose. Kumori watched him with blank eyes as she pieced it all together "so… you're telling me that you decided to basically trap me in dog form so you could come back to life?" She asked, her voice deathly calm.

Everyone in the group froze as she moved Shippo away from her and gazed at Touga with strangely cool eyes. Touga edged away from her, seeming to sense the danger "well… umm…" he started before she growled deep in her throat and shifted to her large inu form, everyone watched as the beautiful black dog stood in front of them, standing taller than Sesshomaru was in his true form, her eyes blood red and red stripes on her cheeks as she gazed at Touga.

Touga gulped and bolted away from the clearing, Kumori hot on his heels, her fangs snapping at his ankles. The group in the clearing broke out laughing; well everyone besides Sesshomaru and Jaken, but even Sesshomaru gave a small smirk as he listened to the demonness chase his father around the forest. The rest of the group eventually calmed down and just started talking while waiting for the two to get back.

An hour or so later Kumori returned with Touga in tow, the latter glowering at the former "there was no need to do that!" he growled. Kumori glared at him "oh yes there was, you trapped me in dog form so you could come back to life! I almost died multiple times!" She snapped back at him, crossing her arms over her chest as she watched him, he snorted "still…" he muttered as he rubbed his back "there was no need to bite" he grumbled.

The group tried to hold in their laughter and but couldn't and ended falling over laughing again, well everyone but Sesshomaru and Jaken. Touga huffed and sat down again, Kumori sat down as well with a smirk on her face as she leaned back on her hands. After a bit more conversation and dinner most of the group went to bed, or at least, the ones who needed sleep went so sleep.

Kumori stood next to a tree and watched the moon, her hand lying against the bark. "Something on your mind?" She looked over her shoulder to spot Touga standing behind her, she felt her body stiffen but answered all the same "just thinking about Naraku" she said, an edge to her voice while talking about the hanyou that made her life for the last three years a living hell. She was surprised when Touga growled at the name as well "nothing good ever comes from him" he said in a deep voice.

She furrowed her brow in confusion, he explained on how he knew Naraku "I was still slightly conscious while I was inside both you and Inuyasha, thought not fully aware of everything that was happening, I was aware of Naraku and when I could I would help. You would have died about a year ago if I hadn't made it so that you moved faster than you normally did" he said softy. Kumori blinked in surprise and thought back, she did remember an event about a year ago where she felt as if she had been moving faster than normal.

"Well… thanks, I guess" she said her voice soft as she turned her face away from him and continued to watch the moon. Touga sighed "Kumori, when are you going to move past what happened over two hundred years ago?" he asked her softly. Kumori stiffened and turned to face him, her eyes narrowed, a sub-sonic growl coming from her throat "don't you dare start that Touga!" She hissed at him.

"You chose her over me; I gave up everything for you! I was disowned by my parents, my soon-to-be husband canceled the contract of marriage and I was left with nothing!" She snarled at him angrily "and then you turned and chose that human wench over me" She growled at him dangerously low in her throat "so don't you dare start with that crap, I have nothing and it. Is. All. Your. Fault!" She snarled, her voice clipped at the end.

Touga flinched, his eyes filled with guilt as she was right. He opened his mouth to speak but she waved her hand at him "don't… just don't" she said, suddenly weary and moved past him. Shifting to the dog form she had been in for seven years to curl up around the small kit Shippo and close her eyes. Touga watched her, his eyes filled with sorrow; hundreds of years ago they had been as close as siblings.

Despite the fact that they were both inuyoukai neither of their parents wanted them to be together, each having marriages already arranged, Touga had filled his obligation to produce a full-blooded heir and then turned to his own happiness. Kumori was a different story, she had yet to actually marry and produce an heir and she didn't want to. So disobeying her parents she turned her back, getting her kicked out of her pack and banned from any communication with her said pack.

Sadly, at the time she was preparing to do so, Touga had thought she was going to continue with the marriage agreement till she produced an heir so turned to find someone that he could care for at the time and found Izayoi. Right after he married the human princess Kumori showed up, her eyes shining till she realized what he had done. Touga knew he had crushed something inside Kumori that day, he tried to explain but she simply shook her head and left him, and he hadn't seen hide or hair of her for months afterwards.

He still didn't understand why she came to his aid the day he technically died, he had been fighting and losing the battle when he felt a familiar presence and realized that it was Kumori who fought behind him, killing the humans who wished to harm him from behind. It was then that he reached out with his essence and wrapped it around Kumori; he had said it was because she was the closest being, which was partly true, but it was also because he didn't trust anyone else with his soul, he would have reached out and found her no matter what to do what he had done.

Touga watched her for a moment more before turning and walking into the forest to circle the clearing, he sensed rather than saw Sesshomaru come up beside him as he walked "something on your mind pup?" Touga asked, his voice cool. He didn't see Sesshomaru's eyes narrow with the word pup but he spoke anyways "just the fact that there is tension between you and Kumori" he said.

Touga let out a warning growl "watch your step pup that is not territory that you want to enter" He said, his voice clipped and edged with danger. Normally Sesshomaru would continue to push, but the fact that this was his father he decided to pack off a little "I was just worried it might hinder our search for the spider." He said simply with a shrug, as if it didn't matter to him but he was actually curious as to what his father's reaction was going to be.

A deeper growl came from Touga's chest, warning Sesshomaru that he should back down immediately. "I assure you pup, neither I nor she will hinder the war against that godforsaken hanyou" Touga snapped out, his eyes flashing dangerously in the Dimlight as he looked over at his oldest son. Sesshomaru immediately recognized the threat and cast his eyes downward in a sign of submission, no one besides his father would ever make him submit and his father only because he was far more powerful than Sesshomaru was.

Sesshomaru gave a short nod before dropping back and turning to walk the opposite way, leaving Touga to his own thoughts. Touga wanted to growl again but reined in that urge and instead searched the area with his senses, the next day the group would decide what they were going to do from here on out.


End file.
